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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22734031">Άνθος του Κάτω Κόσμου</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardust_writer/pseuds/stardust_writer'>stardust_writer</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Voltron: Legendary Defender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Across Realities: A Klance Fantasy Zine, Greek Mythology - Freeform, Hades &amp; Persephone au, Hades!Keith, Kosmo is Cerberus, M/M, because he is a good boy, but that might change later on, it's super minimal right now, klance, persephone!Lance, same with warnings and tags</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 17:34:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,092</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22734031</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardust_writer/pseuds/stardust_writer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>“Who are you?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Keith blinks. It was unusual for someone to enter his realm without knowledge of who he was.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I’m Keith, God of the Underworld,” he says, regally. Not so regally,  “You’re human...and alive?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The fear in the boy’s eyes slowly dissolved. A new spark burned in them, but what, Keith didn’t know.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I’m not a human,” he scoffs. “I’m a god. Lance, son of Demeter. And of course I’m alive, what did you expect?”</em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Or: The Hades and Persephone AU that I took too much liberties with.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Keith/Lance (Voltron)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>201</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Άνθος του Κάτω Κόσμου</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is my piece for <a href="https://acrossrealitieszine.tumblr.com/">Across Realities: A Klance Fantasy Zine</a>!</p><p>I had so many ideas for this AU, but word counts are my weakness. I might eventually rewrite this, so that the original piece is kept in the zine, but until I have the time, enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Something was wrong. An unfamiliar smell wafted through the air, something otherworldly. Keith did not visit the mortal realm very often, but even he knew that scent. Flowers. He stood up from his throne, startling the new batch of human souls for him to judge. He took a moment to look around, as though the problem were in the very throne room he was in.</span>
  <span><br/>
<br/>
</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No, he thought. It was too faint. It had to be from the outlying regions of his realm, from the gates of the Underworld.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“This session is adjourned,” he said, not even pausing to look at his new subjects as they bowed to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He then summoned his chariot, a black beauty embellished with the finest of jewels. Hastily, he climbed aboard and set course for the outer regions of his realm.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As he rode across his domain, the scent evolved into something more tangible, and Keith knew it was definitely not from his world. It was light and playful, too sweet and lively for a place such as the Underworld.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then he heard a voice, cooing and doting. Keith was even more surprised to hear barking, thrice as loud as any normal hound's.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kosmo. Someone was harassing his three-headed dog.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Enraged, Keith brought his chariot to a stop just before the cave’s corner. He held out his hand, manipulating the shadows around it until they faded away to reveal an obsidian sword. Its hilt—adorned with intricate golden patterns—bore his mark, the keys of death.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the same manner of conjuration, he donned his Helm of Darkness and slunk around the corner, invisible. He held up his weapon, ready to damn the trespasser, but found himself frozen before he could strike.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There before him, cuddling an oddly affectionate Kosmo, was the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen. Dirty and tattered clothing aside, Keith couldn't look away. The scattered freckles across his well defined features, the way his chestnut brown hair just fell perfectly to frame his sharp face, and the laughter that bubbled out as Kosmo used all three heads to nuzzle him was breathtaking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And that smile...its beauty was indescribable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The captivating aroma was coming from him, Keith noticed. It was enticing––irresistible.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, Kosmo stood still. He sniffs the air suspiciously for a moment, then his tail begins to wag enthusiastically. All three of his heads look to the direction Keith stood in, still invisible.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What is it, buddy?” The boy asked Kosmo, turning to look in the same direction with confusion.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Keith’s breath hitches in his throat as a pair of stunning midnight blue eyes land on him. The wonder and curiosity in those bright eyes began to disappear, slowly being replaced by something Keith was all too familiar with. Fear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Worried that he would scare the boy away, he quickly removes his Helm to reveal himself. The fear in the boy’s eyes shifts, but doesn’t disappear. More than anything, he appears wary of Keith.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Who are you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Keith blinks. It was unusual for someone to enter his realm without knowledge of who he was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m Keith, God of the Underworld,” he says, regally. Not so regally,  “You’re human...and alive?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The fear in the boy’s eyes slowly dissolved. A new spark burned in them, but what, Keith didn’t know.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m not a human,” he scoffs. “I’m a god. Lance, son of Demeter. And of course I’m alive, what did you expect?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Keith blinks owlishly. Was the boy slow-witted? Did he not understand the concept of the Underworld, or of death? He tried to find the right words to say, to form something that didn’t make the boy afraid of him or of his realm.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well...this is the Underworld,” he says slowly. Keith gestures to their surroundings. “Only dead people venture through my realm.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lance shrugs, puzzling Keith. He goes back to playing with Kosmo, and Keith uses this time to asses the boy. He did give the distinct aura of a god, but even the other Olympians couldn’t just waltz into the Underworld. Not that they would if they could.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Keith turns to Lance. He was smiling, a beautiful, bright smile that had Keith’s chest pounding strangely.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes?” he chokes out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t mind if I stay and play with your dog for a bit, do you? He’s so adorable!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kosmo barks, loud and elated. Keith, to his credit, tries to say no. After all, it couldn’t be good for Lance to be there, especially even longer than he already has been. If he’s Demeter’s son, he must have duties, a certain role to play on the surface.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But as both Lance and Kosmo faced him with such enthusiastic and charming grins, Keith found himself nodding anyway.</span>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lance meant to leave, really, he did. He’d spent more than enough time playing with the three-headed hound. But as he was taking his leave, he suddenly developed a newly found interest in his surroundings.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he first stumbled down the Underworld, most of what he saw was rocky tunnels and dirt paths. Then he found the dog, or Kosmo, as the god of the Underworld had said before leaving them to themselves, and couldn’t pay much attention to anything else.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now, he stares up at the walls and ceilings with awe. As though entranced, Lance walked towards a wall and placed his hand on it, feeling the cool surface. A wide array of jewels glittered in the dark. Veins of mineral and gold spanned all across the tunnel walls and lit up the area.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Curious about where they led to, Lance traces the veins, and walks further down the tunnel. He walks and walks, not realizing how far into the realm he’s really traveled.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then, a small trick of light catches his eye. It was coming from the tunnel ahead. Intrigued, Lance hurries down the tunnel. Whatever he expected, it could not compare to what he found.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His jaw drops when he finds a parcel of land, with gems of various shapes and sizes littered about. It was messy and sporadic, but had there been more of them he could consider it a garden––</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>An idea flashes in his mind and suddenly he’s sprinting back the way he came, screaming for Keith. He barely makes it as far as the area where he found Kosmo, before the god of the Underworld appears before him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You yelled?” His arms were crossed, and he had an eyebrow was raised, indicating annoyance.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I just had a brilliant idea.”</span>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was only supposed to be a couple more hours. Lance told himself that as soon as he had finished helping Keith with his idea, he would leave. His idea to create a remarkable underground garden of bejewelled and golden flowers had turned out perfectly and had been finished in less than a day. Nothing should have kept him from leaving.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Except the longer he stayed, the more he discovered about the Underworld and its beauty.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And Keith, sweet Keith, was always so pleasant to him. He would act formal first, his position as a ruler gave him a reputation after all, but then he would offer Lance soft looks and genuine laughter and smiles, and Lance would feel a strange sense of satisfaction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Those hours turned to days, then weeks, then months. He hardly notices the time passing, although he does get the feeling that he should be going or doing something, but he doesn't want to leave.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He likes the place. He also likes Keith, who is shy and hard to read, but sweet and loyal and seems to love spending time with him despite all his protests.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Then, one day...</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Would you like to dine with me today?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“With you?” Up until then, Lance had not been allowed to dine with the king of the Underworld, and instead spent his meals with Kosmo.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah.” Keith’s pale face turns a little pink and he’s fidgeting anxiously, but Lance thinks it’s endearing. “You don’t have to say yes! I just thought you might like to have a picnic or something in our garden––”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Our garden?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Keith’s face turns red.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I meant your garden,” he blurts. “I only meant––”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lance laughs. He shakes his head and silences Keith with another one of his breathtakingly beautiful smiles.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’d love to dine with you,” he says, unable to stop smiling. “In </span>
  <em>
    <span>our garden</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>They fall in love.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>More time passes. The life Lance has established in the Underworld has given him an indescribable joy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He spent his days roaming the place, speaking with the spirits of the Elysian fields and the minor gods of the realm. By lunch, he would finish playing with Kosmo and head to the garden, their garden. He and Keith always had lunch there together, sharing stories of the first half of their day and allowing Keith to recuperate from his morning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The rest of the day, Lance spent at Keith’s side. He’d accompany him for the rest of his duties, Keith even asks for his opinions and help and values all his input. And when the day ends, they return to Keith’s chambers and bask in each others’ presence until they drift to sleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The residents of the Underworld, new and old, all found it terribly cute. Their once indifferent and aloof king was so incredibly smitten and happy whenever the otherworldly god was at his side. Likewise, as happy and kind as Lance was, the people of the Underworld never failed to notice how his smile would grow whenever their king was around.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then, one fateful day, things changed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It started out as any normal day. Then, when lunch came, Lance was surprised to find Keith there first and lunch already set up. That was unusual, but not unpleasant. He was also surprised to find Keith with his inky black hair pulled back, giving him a slightly neater appearance.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey,” he greets. “What’s with the hair?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nothing,” Keith scoffs, but Lance sees Keith’s face fall. “Is...is it bad?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Not at all,” Lance smiles and places a kiss on Keith’s temple. A perk of being taller than him meant forehead kisses and the best snuggles. “You look great.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The smile that lights up Keith’s face has Lance falling in love all over again. They sit for lunch and talk about each others’ day. Lance recalls how he ran into Thanatos earlier and how the death god very loudly hinted that a new ruler of the Underworld would ascend soon.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I mean, why would he––Keith, are you okay?” Lance hastily moves to pat Keith on the back. The latter choked on his drink.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m alright,” he breathes out. For a moment he’s silent, then he looks to Lance. His eyes are hesitant, body stiff with anxiety again. “Thanatos is right.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Keith takes Lance’s hands and locks eyes with him. His eyes are full of...something and while Lance cannot really decipher them, he feels his own heart start to pound with anticipation––excitement.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Lance, before I met you, my life was dull,” Keith begins nervously. “All  I’ve ever known was the Underworld and my duty. I never stopped to think about how dreary it was, until you came along.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lance smiles and squeezes Keith’s hand.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“When I met you, it was like everything fell into place––everything felt right.” Keith continues, mirroring Lance’s smile. He was still nervous, but it eased a little. “I’m happy with you, and I hope you are with me, too. I never want to be without you, or at least, not for too long.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lance gasps. He thinks he knows what Thanatos meant now.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So, if you’ll have me, will you please do me the honor of becoming my husband?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was a beat of silence, one that had Keith’s heart thumping dangerously. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes!” Lance throws himself onto Keith, wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. “Yes, yes, yes, yes!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Really?” Keith asks. He pulls back to look at Lance, face bewildered. But he’s smiling and there was an unmistakable gleam in his eyes. “You’ll be my king?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Lance says.  He leans his forehead against Keith’s, looking directly into his eyes. “Although, I’m not sure I’m qualified to rule at your side.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re more than qualified,” Keith answers immediately. “You always have my back, you have the best interests for the realm, and you have a heart full of love and goodness. I could find none better to rule at my side.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Lance smiles and pulls Keith in for a kiss.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>
  <a href="https://stardust-writer.tumblr.com/">I'm on tumblr!</a>
</p></blockquote></div></div>
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